Trailers for transporting, launching and retrieving watercraft including fishing, skiing, or pleasure boats or jet skis are widely used by the public. While a variety of different winch and tow rope arrangements have been and may be employed to assist in securing the watercraft to the trailer, one commonly used element of such arrangements is a generally U-shaped bolt or eyelet of some configuration which is affixed to the bow of the watercraft. Typically, such a bolt is positioned on the centerline of the watercraft which provides consistency from one type and/or size of watercraft to the next.
Over the years there have been several attempts to minimize the reliance on ropes and winches and to simplify the loading and unloading of watercraft from trailers. In evaluating these trailer designs it is important to note that simplicity of operation is important but so too is the reliability of the latching mechanism. The latching mechanism should operate in at least a semi-automatic manner, be suitable for use with a wide variety of watercraft including differing sizes and shapes, securely anchor the watercraft to the trailer regardless of external conditions, and be manufactured to withstand potentially repeated contact from the watercraft during loading and unloading.
Accordingly, a need exists for a latching mechanism capable of receiving the U-shaped bolt of a watercraft and automatically securing the watercraft on the trailer. In addition, the latching mechanism should be able to release the watercraft U-shaped bolt during unloading with or without the need for human intervention. Each of these features should be available in a device that can withstand contact from the watercraft during the loading and unloading processes. All of these features are provided by the following invention. Naturally, any improvements along such lines should contemplate good engineering practices, such as simplicity, ease of implementation, unobtrusiveness, stability, etc.